Best Bass for Open Blues Jam

[Pings Bass]

Buy another Gig bag

Kidding aside for you sounds like 6 string is best UNLESS others will be using Bass you bring to Jam; 6 string may make players uncomfortable and elect not to participate

I took a six string fretless to a jam once (not knowing there would be other bassists). Kind of a dick move in retrospect.

 

[sean_on_bass]

I'm going to be playing on and off again in a local open mic style blues jam a couple of times a month. Different players and songs at various points through a 3 hour night. I never know who I'll be playing with aside from the drummer and a guitarist. I'll be replacing the "house" bass player to give him a break.

He's got a very small Hartke combo on the floor (and the guitar player uses his combo as the stand for his little amp), so access to tone/volume controls is very limited. I may or may not end up replacing the current bass player on a more permanent basis as he plays with other bands and I don't gig at all right now.

Now I have a very nice Precision (P/J to be more precise), but there are two issues in using that. For one thing, due to some injuries and the lingering effects, sometimes reaching out more towards the nut can be painful to my fretting hand shoulder. Sometimes I have no issue, sometimes I do. It flares up randomly, never knowing when that might be. Secondly, the tone is rather baked in and works well with my amp and controls. I used it on one other limited fill-in gig with a different rig (no time to make amp adjustments) and the tone sucked in a major way.

I also have my 6 string, (active preamp) Ibanez GSR206 that is effectively an even shorter scale than any short scale bass because every note on my 4 string Precision can be found between the 5th and 12th frets on my 6 string. Just because I play a 6 string does not mean I'm playing solo stuff all over as I'm still a very groove oriented pocket player when not writing/recording. I can and will stay mainly between the 5th and 12th frets for the most part anyway. It also has a lot of extremely versatile tone control between the pickup volume controls, the tone control and the PHAT II preamp EQ control. With this I can more easily avoid messing with the Hartke controls.

Granted, I am in no way a blues purist snob, but some surely will be. For me it's more about being in the groove with the drummer and my 6 string will allow me to play without pain no matter what. Having the low B will also allow me to play any song in any key and keep the low end tight and moving along.

I'm pretty sure what the overall response will be on this topic (disregarding a few outliers), but I thought I'd throw it out there. I've been playing both of my basses along with recordings of most of the house band's stock blues tunes and both basses will work, but really only my 6 string guarantees me a nice deep low end groove and the ability to play anything regardless of how I'm feeling physically. I won't be playing all the tunes, all night and some different/new tunes may be played depending on what other singers, keyboard players and guitarists may be on stage with me at any given point.

I can't bring both as at the moment I only have one gig bag so I have to make a choice for the time being. Both, the drummer and guitarist are pretty open-minded as they host the jam.

So, for the heck of it, what's your opinion? 4 string P/J or the 6 string?

P bass, no contest. But for your and your health issues, you gotta use what is pain free.

If you are open to it, maybe try the P/J with the bass sitting between your legs, more like you are posturing with the 6 string. You seem to be using a totally different posture for one vs the other.

 

[sleddogn]

is it normal for peeps to go to jam's without their own instrument expecting one to be provided? That seems odd to me, but never have done this type of thing...

 

[Lobster11]

I am certainly no poser. I am not in the habit of "looking" the part.

With regards to the blues (or any genre really), I care more about the groove than being visually "groovy".

I can see why some at first sight may think I might noodle all over the place and do solos, etc. with my 6 string...but I hate bass solos, (by anyone, not just me). I may play a 6 string, but I am all about the groove in any group setting. I got my 6 string mainly for myself to experiment with chordal arrangements in writing and recording and find I love playing the 6 string more.

That's exactly what I thought, so I stand by my previous post. If anyone has inaccurate, stereotyped reactions to a 6-string, they will forget about them immediately if you lay down the groove.

 

[logdrum]

Jojo Garza from Los Lonely Boys always played a 6-String bass. Breaking the p-bass tort with flats dogma perpetuated on TB.

 

[bass12]

I used to sometimes play in the house band for a blues jam. The understanding was always that bass players wanting to jam would bring their own basses. If it was me I’d take the bass you’re most comfortable on (in this case, your six).

 

[M-Mittlesteadt]

From direct experience, just bring an unlined fretless, no one will ask to play it.

You mentioned having a low B, but then also not playing below the fifth fret…can’t have it both ways…

But you’ve pretty clearly already decided, so go with you gut feeling and have a blast!

I only meant that if I had to reach like a low F on the E string of my 4 string, it's far less of a reach to play that F on my B string. Sometimes that long reach is no problem, but sometimes my shoulder acts up and on my 4 string I have no options positionally.

 

[Stewie]

If you plan on loaning a bass. Make it a cheapie. Some clown with a bunch of rings and a belt made from a Harley chain won’t be able to ruin your day. Bring the six if it’s your #1, but don’t loan it , ever

 

[M-Mittlesteadt]

This 100%. I would never go to a blues jam and not bring my own bass.

That being said, if you can not easily and quickly get a usable blues tone out of a PJ something is off in the chain from fingers to speakers.

It really depends on the amp I'm plugged into. I won't really have access to the tone controls on the Hartke that's onstage. I've owned and played Precisions for over 45 years. I know how to get a good tone out of one, but sometimes a bass player has a hot bass and dials back the amp controls. So if I can't change them, I'm out of options tonally with the passive P/J.

I brought my P/J to a friend's wedding gig as he wanted me to play on a few tunes using the bass players amp. He had his amp so out of reach (access-wise) and I had no time to make adjustments to it for the few I played on. His amp's tone controls were so anemic I had to completely roll off my tone and cut all the treble out of it, and kill the volume on the Jazz bridge pickup and solo the neck P pickup just to get by, but being a passive Precision I had no way to boost the bass (which it really needed). Sounded like I was playing through an AM radio in a car.

 

[M-Mittlesteadt]

P bass, no contest. But for your and your health issues, you gotta use what is pain free.

If you are open to it, maybe try the P/J with the bass sitting between your legs, more like you are posturing with the 6 string. You seem to be using a totally different posture for one vs the other.

Most definitely, but that is because the Precision has a very skinny, but thicker neck compared to the very wide and thin neck on the 6 string. They each have their own feel. And also in that particular photo, I was doing a lot of chordal work higher up on the 6 string while I was writing a piece.

 

[LowTorque]

It really depends on the amp I'm plugged into. I won't really have access to the tone controls on the Hartke that's onstage. I've owned and played Precisions for over 45 years. I know how to get a good tone out of one, but sometimes a bass player has a hot bass and dials back the amp controls. So if I can't change them, I'm out of options tonally with the passive P/J.

I brought my P/J to a friend's wedding gig as he wanted me to play on a few tunes using the bass players amp. He had his amp so out of reach (access-wise) and I had no time to make adjustments to it for the few I played on. His amp's tone controls were so anemic I had to completely roll off my tone and cut all the treble out of it, and kill the volume on the Jazz bridge pickup and solo the neck P pickup just to get by, but being a passive Precision I had no way to boost the bass (which it really needed). Sounded like I was playing through an AM radio in a car.

I get it, but if you are replacing the house bassplayer you should be allowed to dial in your sound.

Putting an amp out of reach for other players at a jam is somewhat of a passive/aggressive move. Not cool at all IMO.

 

[M-Mittlesteadt]

I get it, but if you are replacing the house bassplayer you should be allowed to dial in your sound.

Putting an amp out of reach for other players at a jam is somewhat of a passive/aggressive move. Not cool at all IMO.

Well, to be fair he's kind of stuck in a corner with not much room. If I end up playing there more often I'll bring my own amp and put it on the opposite side of the drummer (hi-hat side which is my preference anyway). Apparently there hasn't been another bass player show up so he got stuck having to play all night on these jams and would probably welcome the relief/break (and be able to use a different amp as well). I have two Rumble 100 combos. I can leave one home as one is more than enough for this low key gig.

It's a fairly new jam set up so it's still kind of fluid.

 

[logdrum]

Well, to be fair he's kind of stuck in a corner with not much room. If I end up playing there more often I'll bring my own amp and put it on the opposite side of the drummer (hi-hat side which is my preference anyway). Apparently there hasn't been another bass player show up so he got stuck having to play all night on these jams and would probably welcome the relief/break (and be able to use a different amp as well). I have two Rumble 100 combos. I can leave one home as one is more than enough for this low key gig.

It's a fairly new jam set up so it's still kind of fluid.

Bring a preamp and then before the jam just boost the Hartke as loud as you think you need it. Control tone and volume from the Pedal, Problem solved

 

[Passinwind]

I only meant that if I had to reach like a low F on the E string of my 4 string, it's far less of a reach to play that F on my B string. Sometimes that long reach is no problem, but sometimes my shoulder acts up and on my 4 string I have no options positionally.

Whatever it takes for you to keep playing. Wide necks are not my jam at all, given my small hands, so a six string has zero appeal to me.

 

[ELG60]

You should bring whatever you prefer, definitely if there's ergonomic issues. If you're not the house bass player, you're under absolutely  no obligation to allow anyone to use your bass. (I'm often HBP in a couple of jams, so I do have  some experience with the etiquette, at least in our locale')

If you're getting paid, then you have a responsibility to the jam, but that doesn't mean you have to allow some drunken fool to bang your gear around and turn everything up to 11. Always bring a back-up that you won't commit murder over if it gets another ding.

 

[getting-bassed]

That P-bass is super-dope. Could you go direct into the PA with like a SansAmp or something? Instead of using the amp on stage?

 

[ahbradot]

4 string should suffice.
But the pain is not fun.

 

[joeLowB]

Man, is this perplexing.

Reading your first post @M-Mittlesteadt , I said to myself "Shoot, this is easy... take your six string!"

Now, I get the possible value of also having a Beater P Bass for someone to play.

But why on earth does it matter to anyone what you play? Just hold the groove. Done. It's a Jazz jam.

Yet some seem bothered by this?

I've got nothing to add...

.

 

[mcrawfordmusic]

If you prefer the 6, play that. I'd expect others to bring their own bass if they want to get up and jam.

 

[Standalone]

I notice that you have two differing playing positions for each bass. If you switch your seated playing position on the four to that same between the legs style, then the access to the far end of the neck may feel
More comfortable.

Similarly, perhaps revisiting how you wear the bass and moving it further towards vertical and less horizontal would also help!

Also, about the amp change issue, that is a matter of learning and experience more than the bass… you may be overcorrecting the bass’s knobs and the amp settings like in opposite directions in a way that only works with your amp. Perhaps restarting things with everything set flat (and contours and such set to zero) and the bass wide open (I’m assuming passive) might help you set up more moderate settings that transfer better to different amps, rooms, and gig needs.

Fiddly refinements that work at home sometimes get us into the weeds out at the gig

IMHO/IME/YMMV